South African Law

Answer choices

1. A

   Too Strong13% picked this

   Following the elimination of the apartheid system in South Africa, lawyers, judges, and citizens will need to abandon their posture of opposition to law

   Too Strong: need to abandon Wrong Emphasis: too narrow This is borrowing heavily from the final couple sentences of the passage, which is sometimes a trap answer pattern with choice (A). They know these last couple ideas are still ringing in people's ears as they read choice (A). This answer is way too specific and extreme, making it seem like the #1 thing the author had to say was a piece of advice that judges, lawyers and citizens need to abandon their posture of opposition. Lawyers and judges were never said to have a posture of opposition to law; that was just citizens. And this idea is far too narrow. We need a broader sentiment that sounds like "this period of infancy for South Africa's new constitutional democracy is going to be a tricky one when it comes to determining and asserting constitutionally protected rights".

   13%
2. B

   Too Strong: to succeed, they must11% picked this

   If the new legal system in South Africa is to succeed, lawyers, judges, and citizens must learn to challenge parliamentary decisions based on their

   The final sentence of the passage does say "in order to succeed", but then it says "the government will need to show citizens that the legal system is no longer a tool of oppression". It doesn't say "everybody needs to learn to challenge parliamentary decisions". This answer is just a word-salad that takes the beginning of the final sentence and then jams in some wording from the 3rd sentence of the passage. This passage doesn't boil down neatly to one piece of advice. It should just sound like a more general statement that "This new learning period will be a tricky one. Fingers crossed."

   11%
3. C

   Wrong Emphasis: too narrow5% picked this

   Whereas in the past the parliament was both the initiator and arbiter of laws in South Africa, under the new constitution these powers will

   This doesn't capture the main gist that "this period where the legal system and the citizenry try to figure out how to navigate their brand new rights is going to be a tricky one". It just tells us a very, very, very narrow fact.

   5%
4. D

   Correct65% picked this

   Despite the lack of relevant legal precedents and the public’s antagonistic relation to the law, South Africa is moving from a legal system where

   Why this is right

   This answer is written a little weirdly, but it's our best available. The opening clause captures the discussion in the 2nd paragraph (lack of relevant legal precedents) and the 3rd paragraph (public's antagonistic relation to the law). The main clause captures the information we learned in the 1st paragraph (South Africa moved from a system in which parliament had utmost control to one in which citizens' rights are protected by a constitution). This answer, more than any other, has language in it that maps to each of the three paragraphs.

   Skill tested: Main Point · how this choice captures the passage's function is the move to repeat next time.

   65%
5. E

   Too Narrow6% picked this

   While South Africa’s judges will have to look initially to other countries to provide interpretations for its new bill of rights, eventually it must

   This answer says something true from the passage, but it's just one of the several reasons why the passage thinks this early period of the new constitutional democracy will be tough. 1. lawyers aren't used to interpretative way of looking at law 2. the multiracial society has a wide range of political and personal beliefs, and the language of the bill of rights is written in very general terms -- how will they find agreement? 3. they will look to interpretations found in foreign law, being careful to remember the unique needs of the countries where those precedents came from vs. the particular needs of South Africa. 4. the citizens historically have a distrustful relationship to the law, so it will take a lot of work to reform that image

   6%